Even though I have been on several long distance hikes, I still use a gear list to make sure that I do not forget anything back at home. The list has evolved over time and probably will continue to do so as I make changes to gear, and change with seasons and technology.

Download the Gear List  *This file is an MS Excel File and will work directly on a Windows computer.    Apple users can use OpenOffice or Excel (MS Office) for Mac.

Personally, I use the spreadsheet for the following:

  • gear acquisition
  • packing checklist
  • weight evaluation

When planning for a hike, I will print out the gear list and use it as a shopping list for anything that I don’t have already, and also use it as my final checklist as I load my pack and head out the door for my hike.

How to use the Gear List spreadsheet.

While the spreadsheet has columns for weights of individual items and totals to see what each category of items weighs, as well as a grand total – it is not the intention of the spreadsheet to focus on weight. You can ignore the weight column entirely. You may find the exercise of inputting the weight into the spreadsheet quite helpful. You can see where the bulk of your carried weight lies and it can help you to lighten your load, if that is something you care about.

The Gear List is broken up into several categories, each category calculating its own weight:

  • The Big Four
  • Kitchen
  • Miscellaneous
  • Health/Hygeine
  • Carried Clothing
  • Clothing Worn

There are several items included on the spreadsheet that most people have in their packs. If you have additional items, replace the ‘…more items’ with your gear. You can select the  ‘….more items’ that you don’t need to use and erase that text/row if you want a cleaner look. You can certainly delete items that you don’t want in the spreadsheet as well.

The columns for the Gear List are:
A – Gear Item
B – Weight (in Ounces)
C – Quantity – How many of the particular Gear Item
D – Total Weight (Column B x Column C)
E – Acquired – Gear Item is in your posession
F – Packed – Gear Item is in the pack and accounted for.

Column D will self-populate when items are entered into Columns B and C, so you don’t need to do that calculation.  Same goes with the Grand Total and Section Sub-Total – They will populate on their own.

Some cells have a formula built into them and are protected (and therefore are not readily delete-able or alter-able).  You can override the protection by following the procedure that is outlined in the warning message if you do try to add/change data to a protected cell.

Download the Gear List  *This file is an MS Excel File and will work directly on a Windows computer.    Apple users can use OpenOffice or Excel (MS Office) for Mac.

Beardoh!’s Gear List for Long Trail 2013 Hike *This file is a PDF file.  Any questions about specific items are welcome.